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Less than a day after enduring one of the most exhausting defeats in World Series history, the Blue Jays displayed total control.

Guerrero smashed a two-run home run and Shane Bieber delivered a steady start as the Blue Jays beat the Dodgers 6-2 in the fourth game on Tuesday night at their home ballpark, squaring the Fall Classic at two wins apiece and guaranteeing the series will head back to Canada.

The Blue Jays had spent the morning of the next day processing their 18-inning third game defeat – tied for the longest Fall Classic contest ever – a loss that denied them the chance to lead the series and depleted both relief corps. Manager John Schneider insisted later that “the Dodgers took a contest, not the championship”. A day later, his squad provided convincing proof.

Initial Innings

The Dodgers again scored first. Muncy walked in the second inning, moved up on a single and scored on Hernández's sacrifice fly. But the initial breakthrough did not rattle a Toronto club that topped Major League Baseball with 49 come-from-behind wins this year.

They responded immediately in the third. Nathan Lukes lined a one away base hit to centre and Guerrero stepped in looking for a breaking ball. Ohtani threw a slider up and Guerrero sent it screaming over the outfield fence. It was his first extra-base hit of the World Series and his 7th home run this playoffs – a new team record – regaining the Toronto's advantage after 13 shutout frames and shifting the momentum of the game.

Ohtani's Performance

That hit also ended Ohtani's history-making run of 11 consecutive plate appearances getting on base. The dual-threat phenomenon had hit two homers and got on base a record nine times in the Los Angeles' third game comeback win. But on Tuesday, he started on limited rest – his briefest ever – after requiring an IV to recover from the previous marathon.

His fastball velocity sat under his seasonal norm and he labored more as the contest wore on. Even so, he showed flashes of his typical command, retiring 11 of 12 after Guerrero Jr's blast and fanning six. He even walked in the first inning to continue his Fall Classic streak. But the Toronto made him work: six hits and four runs were charged to him in over six innings.

Late Game Surge

The bigger issue for Los Angeles was what came next when Ohtani finally ran out of steam.

Daulton Varsho started the seventh with a sharp hit to right field, and Clement smashed a two-base hit off the wall to put runners on with no outs. Roberts had little choice but to remove Ohtani, who departed to a roaring applause from the home crowd. The Dodgers' bullpen could not finish the escape.

Banda inherited the jam and immediately trailed in the count. Giménez battled to a 3-2 count before scoring the runner with a base hit to left. Ty France followed with a fielder's choice to make it 4-1, and that was sufficient to knock the pitcher out of the game. Treinen came in next but also was unable to stop the rally: Bichette and Addison Barger hit run-scoring base hits through the diamond, completing a four-run barrage that pushed the margin to 6-1.

Blue Jays's Resilience

The Toronto's capacity to withstand early blows and respond has characterized their entire postseason. They once again succeeded without George Springer, the hurt leadoff man who left Game 3 after tweaking his oblique.

Shane Bieber, in contrast, was exactly what the Blue Jays required. Traded for mid-season while finishing recovery from Tommy John surgery, the ex- award-winning winner stranded several runners and silenced the Dodgers' dangerous batting order. He allowed one earned run on four hits and three free passes before Schneider summoned rookie left-hander Mason Fluharty to face the core of the lineup in the sixth inning. He required just 4 pitches to get out Muncy and Edman, preserving a narrow advantage that soon grew comfortable.

Former starting pitcher Bassitt then worked a scoreless seventh and eighth innings as the Los Angeles' bats continued to sputter. Los Angeles have produced only 3 scores over their previous 20 innings, an sudden slowdown for a team that ranked among baseball's top offenses all season.

Closing Innings

The Los Angeles managed a run in the ninth when Tommy Edman grounded out to score Teoscar Hernández after a walk and Muncy's double put runners aboard. But Louis Varland closed it down without allowing a comeback to develop.

Following a night when Toronto left a Fall Classic-record 19 baserunners and collapsed after repeated of wasted opportunities, Game 4 was ruthlessly efficient. 6 separate Blue Jays recorded hits, 5 brought home runs and the team converted nearly every run-scoring opportunity presented in the final innings.

Looking Ahead

The victory guarantees the championship title will be presented at their home stadium, where the Toronto have not celebrated a title since Joe Carter's iconic walk-off homer in '93. They now are aware they are guaranteed a full house in Canada on Friday evening – and perhaps the next day – no matter what occurs next in LA.

The fifth game approaches with the matchup even and energy swinging north. Dodgers left-hander Snell (3-1, 2.42 ERA) will attempt to arrest the Toronto's surge. The Blue Jays counter with rookie Trey Yesavage (2-1, 4.26 ERA) in a repeat of Game 1, when the Blue Jays knocked out the starter early in an 11-4 victory.